Hi,
How many hours do your kids spend in front of the TV? Kids these
days spend over four hours on TV per day according to the Kaiser
Family Foundation study. I don't know about you, but I limit
my children only one hour of TV per day. My children most probably
will grow up to remember what I said most often "Go outside and
play!" ....;-)

Don't get me wrong. I think watching 'certain' TV programs is a good
way to enlarge children's knowledge and stimulate children's
curiosity and encourages them to find out more from books or
Internet. Having said that, watching TV have many bad effects on the
children too. It is believe that the brain goes into alpha brainwave
state when watching TV. This state feels relaxing and viewers become
less alert and more passive. The state is comparable to hypnosis and
critical brain functions are shut down. Not to mention that TV
causes ADHD symptoms in children .... plus many more.

Should you trash your TV? Probably not but you should control your
children's TV watching in terms of time and desired programs.
Children need to discover the active knowledge by themselves rather
than passive knowledge which is told to them by TV. Good luck!

Thought for today:
" Be not afraid of growing slowly, be afraid only of standing still. " - Chinese Proverb

Televisions have become essential and irreplaceable in most
households for a long time. Children are very fond of watching TV
and some parents are happy about that because it may stop their
children playing around and destroying things. But do you know what are
the negative effects of TV? Read more here!

Perlmutter, a neurologist and physician, helps parents utilize that "brief window of opportunity in a child's
life when parents can help create a brain that is built for optimal performance." Some of the book's advice
ought to be common knowledge—establish a healthy diet, avoid toxins and limit television and video games -
but Perlmutter's detailed guidelines take the guesswork out of smart parenting.

Researchers said they were surprised not only by the number of hours
young children are spending in front of the television but also by
the primary reason: Most parents are using television as an
educational tool, not for the more conventional explanation of
baby-sitting. Despite nearly a decade of warnings by pediatricians
to the contrary, parents believe the content of programs aimed at
babies is good for brain development.

Yes, there are gender differences in cognitive function, but they're
more limited than previously thought. And yes, income does affect
cognitive performance -- but less than expected when only healthy
children are considered. And while basic cognitive skills steadily
improve in middle childhood, they then seem to level off --
questioning the idea of a burst of brain development in adolescence.

Parents may be able to predict how well kids will do in math and
reading by measuring their fingers, British scientists claim. The
hormones in the womb that create good math skills also make a
child's ring finger longer than the index, or pointing finger, say
University of Bath researchers.

To understand the competing pressures on children's education,
consider the two very different approaches advocated in the titles
of these academic papers delivered this week to the Canadian Society
for the Study of Education: "Where Did All the Toys go? Play and
Learning in the Early Primary Classroom," and "From Educational
Neuroscience to Neuropedagogy.".

For years, health advocates have promoted the importance of folic
acid for prenatal healthcare. Now, the latest in prenatal research
recognizes another crucial prenatal nutrient, DHA (docosahexaenoic
acid), an omega-3 fatty acid, that many women lack in their everyday
diet and supplements.

He said new science was showing brains were not fully developed
until post-adolescence - meaning repeated brain injuries could leave
lasting damage and teens and young adults should avoid high-impact
sports. "When you sustain a frontal head injury you potentially
damage the developing frontal brain and the memory and emotional
parts of it during their critical phase of development," Professor
Hickie said.

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